Family history of PCOS, Endo, Fibroids, miscarriage

by Lara
(Australia)

Hi Wray, My question is three-fold. My family including myself has a long history of 'female' related hormone problems. I have recently been diagnosed with endo after a very large ovarian cyst was found and removed. My mother had fibroids for most of her life (she is post-menopausal now) and was recommended several times to have a full hysterectomy which she declined to do, she also had an ectopic pregnancy and tubal ligation. My sister has PCOS and had a miscarriage earlier this year.

My questions are these - firstly, my sister has just found out that she is pregnant again (5 weeks) which is fantastic news but she is scared that a second miscarriage might occur. I have ordered three months of the Natpro for her but would like to know if this is ok for her to start taking straight away. Are there any ill effects from taking it during pregnancy or stopping it during pregnancy if she reacts badly to it?

Second question, even though my mother is post menopausal she was found to be severely lacking in oestrogen but when she took oral oestrogen it made her very sick. Her hair has started to fall out rapidly and she is at her wits end. She is currently on heart medication (Plavix, Noten) and was wondering if she took the Natpro would that contraindicate things?

Finally, due to the endo with myself I have been prescribed the pill (Yasmin) - is it ok to use Natpro with this? Or would it throw out all of the levels.

Thanks so much. Look forward to hearing a reply. :-)

Comments for Family history of PCOS, Endo, Fibroids, miscarriage

Hi Lara I might not have space to answer all questions, but I'll give it a go! You all have oxidative stress which has lead to Inflammation. This has lead to very unhappy ovaries and uteri, leading to excess oestrogen and a lack of progesterone. I believe the common link is a lack of vitamin D, you live in Australia, paranoid about the sun, so you probably avoid it or cover yourselves with sunscreen. Please have a test done, please. See Vitamin D council In PCOS anovulation occurs frequently so no progesterone is made, see PCOS and Pregnancy. Endo and fibroids are stimulated by oestrogen, please see Endometriosis and Fibroids. The last thing any of you need is more oestrogen! Please see our pages on Contraceptives and HRT. Oestrogen is a pro-inflammatory hormone, and causes clots, so why your mother was given it is beyond me! Progesterone prevents clots by reducing thrombin by 10-15%, see here, it inhibits the formation of cholesterol into cholesteryl ester and decreases CE cellular levels, see here, it's a potent vasodilator so lowering blood pressure, it prevents lipid peroxidation and more! This is an excellent article. Your mother needs the amino acid taurine, it's the most vital nutrient for the heart, see here. She also needs vitamin D, see here and here.

This is the protocol I suggested recently to one woman with endo and pain 24 hrs a day, she now has none, says she feels wonderful and has cancelled the hyst she had scheduled...Tsp Days mg Tubes3 4 500mg/day 12 6 330mg/day 11 1/2 16 250mg/day 1I asked her to use it daily, throughout her period too, and to continue on the 250mg/day for 2-3 months. Then reduce slowly till the optimum is found, finally following her cycle again. Take care Wray

Jul 25, 2010

replyby: Lara

Hi Wray, thanks so much for all of the info! Fascinating!! I know that both Mum and my sister are vitamin D deficient so will get myself checked too. Also, I couldn't agree more with the estrogen overload for all of us - this is what we have long thought too. Thanks again for the quick reply!!

Jul 31, 2010

replyby: Wray

Hi Lara Glad it was of help! Pleased you're getting your vit D level checked. The minimum dose should be 5000iu's per day, if very low in it then 10,000iu's per day. Our year round level should be no lower than 50ng/ml or 125nmol/L. The body only starts storing vit D when the level gets to 40ng/ml or 100nmol/L. Below that it's using it up as fast as it can make it. Take care Wray

Jun 19, 2011

Family history of PCOS, Endo, Fibroids, miscarriageby: Lara

Hi Wray,

I am writing this as a kind of summary, thank you and confession all in one. Thank you so much for your advice with the Natpro. My sister now has a beautiful baby girl who is 3 months old. This was the baby I mentioned at 5 weeks! We got her on Natpro straight away as she was also diagnosed with low-lying placenta. I am sure this was fixed only due to the Natpro and she ended up being a week over due in the end!

My mother resisted going on Natpro but has been taking it for the past two months and has never felt better. She says she cannot believe how smooth her skin is, her nails no longer have ridges in them, she is calmer than ever amongst many other benefits. Unfortunately, I have been the last to do anything. I still haven't started it, but am about to! Contrary to your advice, I kept up with the pill as I thought the medical route would be the safest. How wrong I was! I tried two different types Valette and Yasmin and they both made me so apathetic and depressed. I also developed severe migraines and vomitting and was in denial that is was hormone related so have had an endoscopy, been to an ENT specialist (as I developed ulcers all down my throat) and various other scans - ridiculous! I could kick myself now. So now that I am back where I started from, can you please clarify again the dose that I should take? I was slightly confused last time. Thanks again. Signed the reformed!

Jun 26, 2011

Family history of PCOS, Endo, Fibroids, miscarriage by: Wray

Hi Lara Bless you for this update! I couldn't be more delighted your sister has a baby daughter, I'm sure the progesterone would have benefited the pregnancy greatly. And your mother too, even though it took her time to decide. The skin does become smoother, see here. And the calmness too, see here,here and here. Whenever I feel overly stressed, I rub some on! In fact we have a page on Anxiety. And your confession! It is a big decision, specially with something like endo. All Contraceptives have the potential to cause adverse side effects, particularly Yasmin or Yaz, the same drug under a different name, see here. They normally stop or slow down ovarian function. If ovulation is stopped of course no progesterone is made. Not something any of us need. A lack of progesterone can lead to depression/anxiety (see above link), migraines, see here,here,here,here,here and here. Nausea too, this is caused by excess oestrogen, and often occurs in the first few weeks of pregnancy. The reason being the corpus luteum is now producing progesterone. But progesterone in small quantities stimulates oestrogen, hence the nausea. Once progesterone levels have risen and overcome the Oestrogen Dominance, the nausea goes. I'm running out of space, so will start a new comment below. Take care Wray

Jun 26, 2011

Family history of PCOS, Endo, Fibroids, miscarriage by: Wray

Hi Lara I asked you to have a vitamin D test done, did you manage to? A lack of vitamin D is behind endo and all inflammatory disorders. Please get your level up to 70 to 100ng/ml as soon as you can. Although the normal daily dose is 5000iu's per day, I feel you would benefit from 10 000iu's per day for a month or two. I've found another excellent site on vitamin D, please look through it and the previous one I gave, see the Vitamin D Council and GrassrootsHealth websites. Please ask your mother to take it too, if she's not already doing so. And I do hope she's taking the taurine for her heart, both this and vitamin D are essential. Drugs are not needed. Now to how much progesterone you should use. It did sound complicated, and I've since realised 500mg/day is the optimum to use. Certainly initially, as oestrogen dominance can kick in, and it's not pleasant. This might be needed for the first 2 to 3 cycles, but I would advise against following it. Use the progesterone daily, even during any bleeding. Once oestrogen is under control, you can start reducing the amount. Then when you feel stable, you can start following your cycle again. There's info on how to do this our on page How to use progesterone cream. You might like to read this comment here from another user. Although she didn't have endo, she did have many adverse side effects from being on the pill. But please, please have that vitamin D test, and please get your level as high as you can, as quickly as you can. Take care Wray

Aug 01, 2011

family historyby: Anonymous

Hi Wray, My vitamin D levels were checked and yes they were low, so am on supplements now. :-) Just querying though - you said above daily dosage was 5000iu which I assume you mean 500iu and to take 1000 iu daily rather than 10000 iu (this is not even used for severe cases like rickets and can result in overdose...).

Have just received my cream which I am eager to start but a little concerned about the extra high dosage of 500mg (is this three teaspoons...?) It won't put me into a peri-menopause situation will it? I am 35 and desperately trying to preserve my fertility :-)

Thanks so much! You are always so fantastic at replying and giving advice. A quick update - my Mother is doing fabulously well on the cream and her skin makes her look 10 years younger which she loves. She says she does feel nauseous sometimes - should she increase her dose? Thanks again. Lara :-)

Aug 05, 2011

family history by: Wray

Hi Lara No I did mean 5000iu's per day, or 10,000iu's or more if need be. I have people taking 20,000iu's if they have cancer. Rickets is the least of our worries, a blood level of 30ng/ml is sufficient to correct this, but cancer, heart disease, diabetes etc needs to have levels up in the 70-100ng/ml. Low doses of 600iu's per day, the FDA recommended amount, will do nothing for us. Overdosing is very difficult, only when blood levels reach 200ng/ml does vitamin D become toxic. And it's so easy to reverse if this is the case, see here and here. You might like to see this chart on Disease Incidence Prevention by Serum 25(OH)D Level. When you have time, please let me know your level, as the labs and doctors use 30ng/ml as the cut off point, when it should be 70-100ng/ml. I've just answered a comment from someone else I'm helping, telling me her original level had been 34ng/ml, and has only gone up to 54ng/ml after taking 5000iu's per day for 6 months. It really does need to be taken in higher doses to achieve results. I recommend 500mg/day for severe painful endo with heavy bleeding, so if you don't have this, of course you can use a lower amount. I would suggest starting on 200mg/day and see how you get on. But please read the Oestrogen Dominance before you start! Progesterone won't send you into peri-menopause, I can assure you of that! So pleased your mother is still doing well. The nausea is a sign of excess oestrogen, so if it should occur, get her to rub some cream on then and there. Finally, you mention you want to preserve your fertility, please look at our page on Pregnancy. This is an excellent video to watch too, see here. It might convince you about the high level of vitamin D I recommend! Take care Wray

Although this web site is not intended to be prescriptive, it is intended, and hoped, that it will induce in you a sufficient level of scepticism about some health care practices to impel you to seek out medical advice that is not captive to purely commercial interests, or blinded by academic and institutional hubris. You are encouraged to refer any health problem to a health care practitioner and, in reference to any information contained in this web site, preferably one with specific knowledge of progesterone therapy.